As the first student blogger on our trip, I would like to formally say “Hello” from the class of C-251! We are now fully immersed in all parts of ship life, from handling sails on the deck, to science, to helping in the galley. Sometimes it feels as though we are learning a different language with the amount of new information and vocabulary coming our way.

I am pleased to report that all is well on board the Corwith Cramer. As we rock and roll our way across the ocean life is looking quite nice for the C-251crew. Sails are set, the fish are jumping/flying, science is happening, the daystar is burning, & the fishing line is out.

It has been a mere 24 hours since setting sail from San Juan, Puerto Rico. Yet, already, land is far out of sight and the students of our watch are being fully immersed into the world of sailing and oceanographic research.  Many aboard are fighting battles of mind over body against the stomach churning “mal del mar,” and the blisters and raw skin from heavy line handling are just beginning to take their toll.  It is rarely easy to enter the guarded domain of Neptune and Poseidon. 

Greetings from the Atlantic Ocean! Class C251 is officially underway heading north (ish) (and hopefully east!) from San Juan, Puerto Rico. We are sailing full and by, beating to windward as we make our way towards Antigua, our first port stop.

The program “Ocean Exploration, Caribbean,” C-251, has now begun.  Thirteen students from ten different American colleges and schools have boarded the Corwith Cramer and have started their orientation for life aboard a tall ship—their “sea component.”  Some students arrived in San Juan a number of days ago with friends and family and have begun the “port stop” exploration that will be an integral part of the program.  The sixteenth-century walled city of Old San Juan will provide an excellent starting point for comparing and contrasting the histories, cultures and economies of the Caribbean island nations we visit.

The students of C-251, Ocean Exploration, will arrive in San Juan, Puerto Rico to board the SSV Corwith Cramer by Friday, February 14th. They will end their voyage in St. Croix around Monday, March 24th.